1. Goal-Keeping

1.1. Sachin Suresh

Suresh is the primary goalkeeper, having been in 15 of the matches played. His save rate of 70% (Faced: 50, Saved: 35) is from having conceded 15 goals and puts him in the top quartile across all GK in the league. This is very similar to Mumbai City’s P. Lachenpa save rate of 72.5%, who played in 19 matches but faced and saved a very similar number of shots (Faced: 51, Saved: 37).

The 15 conceded goals is equivalent to the 1 goal per match that it was expected he would concede.

Suresh achieved 5 clean sheets out of the 15 match played, placing him 7th in the ranking of GK clean sheet rates across the league of defenders. While Lachenpa shut out goals for 8 out of the 19 matches he played in, producing the 2nd highest clean sheet rate.

1.2. Karanjit Singh

With an average of conceding 2 goals per match, Singh’s save rate of 55% puts him in the bottom quartile across all GK in the league. All of the GK who faced more shots than Singh had a higher save rate.

His variance in expected goals against vs conceded goals consolidates the lower save rate (xGA: 1.25, GA: 2.17).

Singh played 6 matches, and none of these matches resulted in a clean sheet, placing his performance lower than the majority of GK in the league.

1.3. Lara Sharma

For the 2 matches that Sharma played, he had a good save rate of 75%, conceding only 3 out of the 12 goals he faced. These results put him in the top across all GK in the league.

The 3 conceded goals is also very close to his expected goals against of 2.46, though is slightly under.

Having only played 2 matches in the league he had limited chance of achieving a clean sheet and therefore had 0 clean sheets, putting him in the bottom with K. Singh and also Mumbai City’s second GK M. Nawaz.

2. Defense

2.1. Aritra Das

While das played in 2 matches there is no recorded information for his statistics.

2.2. Aibanbha Dohling

Dohling played in 3 matches. In those 3 matches he managed to show a high success rate for Aerial Duels of 83.33%, the highest out of the defenders in KB, though he was in fewer Aerial Duels per game.

Dohling had the highest number of Successful Defensive Action Per Game in KB, at 9.19, though this number did not put him in the top 20. He also had the highest number of Duels Per Game (8.43) and highest Duels Won (77.27%), indicating that he takes on opponents well.

His Slide Tackles Per Game was 0.77, the second highest out of the KB defenders, showing confidence against opponents. His Interceptions Per Game however is the lowest at 1.91. A possible are of improvement for Dohling.

2.3. Hormipam Ruivah

Ruivah had the highest number of yellow cards (5) across the 12 matches that he played in the season, resulting in the highest ratio of fouls per game (1.54).Comparatively, all of the Mumbai City defenders had less fouls and less yellow cards, highlighting an area where Ruivah can enhance his performance.

The highest number of Interceptions Per Game was from Ruivah, showing a strong ability to anticipate his opponents movements. However, he also had the lowest rate for Duel Won of 50%, indicating a weakness and that there is room for improvement as consistently winning duels is a crucial skill for a defender.

2.4. Naocha Singh

Singh had the most cards in the season for KB defenders, (Yellow: 5, Red: 1). With respect to the rest of the league players this is a high number of cards, and suggests his approach in matches is less disciplined.

Singh made approximately 3.91 interceptions per game. This is 1 interception lower than many of his peers but still presents a good ability to read his opponents. He had high Successful Defensive Actions Per Game (8.89) and Duels Won Rate (68.22%) across the 16 matches he played in. Though his Aeriel Duels Won Rate dropped lower and was 53.45%, the lowest out of the KB defenders. His number of Aerial Duels Per Game (3.29) was very similar to the others, therefore the lower win rate suggest Aerial Duels are an area of improvement for Singh. Mumbai City’s Krouma and H. Ralte had a similar Aerial Duels Won of 48.15% and 55% respectively, though they played in fewer matches (10) compared to Singh (16).

2.5. Pritam Kotal

Kotel had a high rate of Successful Defensive Actions Per Game of 8.17 and moderate Interceptions Per Game of 4.76, showing a good consistent ability to read his opponents, as he played in majority of the matches (18).

Like N. Singh, Kotel also had a lower Aerial Duel Won Rate of 53.45% while having a similar number of Aerial Duel Per Game across the defenders, indicating that this is an area of improvement for him too. While his Duels Won Rate of 69.86% was very comparable to Singh’s, Kotel had almost half as many Duels Per Game.

2.6. Miloš Drinčić

Drinčić also played in 18 matches, and has a very similar line up of statistics to fellow Right Centre Back P. Kotel. Drinčić had a high rate of Successful Defensive Action Per Game of 9 and high Interceptions Per Game of 4.77, showing confidence in confronting his opponents.

His Duels Won Rate and Aerial Duels Won Rates are good in comparison to the other KB defenders (69.81% and 62.50% respectively). Tiri from Mumbai City played in a similar number of matches (20) but had a higher rate for Aerial Duels Won (68.32%) and had approximately 2 more Aerial Duels Per Game.

2.7. Marko Lešković

Lešković had a strong 4.83 Interceptions Per Game, an amount that is comparable to the players in the Successful Defensive Actions Top 20 graph, and is high with respect to other defenders in KB.

Lešković had the lowest no. Successful Defensive Actions Per Game (6.85) out of the defenders in Kerala Blasters, who averaged more in the 8-9 range. His number of Duels Per Game is also the lowest of the team at 2.81, presenting areas of his skills that could be improved.

His Duels Won Rate of 56% is also considered low compared to the other KB defenders, coming in at the second lowest, and he also had an Aerial Duels Won Rate of 54.84% Though majority of the leagues defenders have an Aerial Duels Won Rate between 45-65%, therefore Lešković’s performance in Duels would be considered average with respect to this. His number of Duels Per Game is also the lowest of the team at 2.81, presenting an area of his skills that could be improved.

2.8. Sandeep Singh

Singh had the highest number of Slide Tackles Per Game (1.04) compared to his teams defenders, which is quite high when comparing against the players in the Successful Defensive Actions Top 20 graph. Singh had 3.73 Interceptions Per Game, slightly lower than all but 1 of the KB defenders.

His Duels Won Rate of 66.67% indicate that 2 out of every 3 one on one interactions against his opponents he succeeds in getting possession of the ball. His number of Duels Per Game of 6.5 is higher than majority of defenders that played across the league this season. This demonstrates Singh’s strong defensive abilities. His Aerial Duels Won Rate of 58.54% is slightly lower than his Duels Won Rate. Though his stats are very similar to R. Bheke from Mumbai City, despite Singh having played in 6 fewer matches than Bheke (MP:20, Aerial Duels Won: 60%, Aerial Duels: 3.45).

2.9. Prabir Das

Das had the lowest fouls per game ratio out of the KB defenders (0.18). Out of all the defenders across the teams in the League, this was the second lowest number of Fouls Per Game, showing a strong discipline in his game play.

Compared to his fellow defenders in KB, and all the defenders in the league, Das had a lower number of Successful Defensive Actions Per Game of 7.46. Das displayed an impressive Aerial Deuls Won Rate of 65%, out of a consistent number of Aerial Duel Per Game of 3.55.

3. Midfield

3.1. Mohammed Aimen

Mohammed Aimen primarily played on the left wing this season partaking in 20 matches and delivering 1 goal from 14 shots with a goal conversion rate of 7.143%. As a player down the wings, occasionally Aimen would find himself in goal scoring positions and improving this conversion rate would see him bag more goals and help the team in attacking transition. He has also achieved 1 assist from 20 matches, equally his expected assists of 0.85 for the season.

M. Aimen engaged in approximately 10.44 offensive duels per 90 minutes, winning 46.72% of them. His successful dribble rate was impressive at 64.38%, indicating his ability to take on opponents effectively. This places him in line with players such as L. Colaco from Mohun Bagan who himself has played 16 matches, averaging 10.1 duels per game with a success rate of 47.83% and V. Puthiya from East Bengal who has played 19 matches with an offensive duel rate of 11.2 per match and finding success 48.67% of those duels.

M. Aimen’s key highlight was his ability to pass the ball in various directions to dictate the mode of play. He averaged 83.56%, 88.35% and 57.14% for successful short/medium passes, lateral passes and long passes placing him amongst one of the best in the league for these passing types and above the midfielder and league average. However, his crossing success rate was 20% which can be further improved to allow the strikers for another avenue to score. Overall, Mohammed Aimen had a terrific season impacting game play through his various pass types but output involvement could be addressed prior to the upcoming season.

3.2. Freddy Lallawmawma

Freddy Lallwamawma had a quiet season playing primarily as both right and left center midfielder across 9 matches registering 0 goals and 0 assists. In those 9 matches, he had 4 shots with only 1 shot being on target and combined xG of 0.23 for the season. Being a midfielder, getting involved in the attacking play and contributing occasionally could be an improvement for the upcoming season.

However, Freddy did register an offensive duel success rate of 62.50% for the season, taking on approximately 5 offensive duels per game. This places him to players with similar offensive attributes such as Joao Victor from Hyderabad FC who registered approximately 4 offensive duels per game finding success 61.9% of those duels and Laldinliana Renthlei from Odisha who has played 5.19 offensive duels per game and finding success on 66.67% of those duels. A potential improvement in Freddy’s game is to play more games in the course of the season and consistently maintain the offensive success he has found across the 9 games. An example of a player he can immolate is J. Mazorro who has played 20 matches and registered 6.05 offensive duels per game but has maintained a high success rate of 60%. However, as opposed to the players mentioned, Freddy has a high successful dribbling percentage of 100%.

Freddy Lallwamawma’s passing success is his biggest attribute, ranging above league and midfielder success for each pass type apart from smart, through passes and crosses. He has 92.86% successful lateral passes and 86.29 short/medium passes. However, his long pass accuracy is 76.92% suggesting that having him in midfield opens up Kerala’s playstyle open to bring the wide players to bring in threat.

Overall, Freddy Lallwamawma had a great season in terms dictating the style of play through his passing but occasionally attacking contribution could be considered for improvement.

3.3. Saurav Mandal

Saurav Mandel played majority of this season on the right wing and occasionally as a right back in defence playing across 7 matches and scoring 3 goals but contributing with 2 assists from the wing. This is in-line with his expected assists which is also at 1.98 assists across the season. Defensively, he committed 0.63 fouls per game and received 2 yellow cards showing that when he does play as right back, he is disciplined and can keep to the attacker restricting their playstyle.

Across the 7 matches Saurav was involved in, he averaged approximately 8 offensive duels per game, finding success on 40% of them and a successful dribble rate of 53.33%. This places him with similar players such as I. Vanalaruatfela from Odisha who has played 21 matches, taking on 8 offensive duels per game on average and a success rate of 38.95%. To improve his play on the right wing, a player that Saurav Mandal can immolate is B. Fernandes from Goa who himself has played 17 matches, taking on approximately 9 offensive duels per game on average and finding success 50.37%.

Mandel passing range has been in-line with the league average for each pass type, but he has excelled with progressive passes, finding success 82.35% of those passes which is incredibly higher than the league average and midfielder average. This is also the same case for short/medium passes with his success rate at 86.36%.

An area of improvement for this player is getting into more goal-scoring positions such as runs in behind the player and crossing success rate which was at 29.41% for the season. As winger, it is crucial that you can successfully feed the ball to players in the penalty area. However, his passes to penalty area averages at 30 per game and therefore it is simply the crossing to the penalty area that could potentially be improved.

3.4. Daisuke Sakai

Daisuke Sakai has been involved in 20 games this season playing on either wing. However, this player is a standout to other players in the team for his shooting ability and involvement in attacking play from the wings. Sakai has scored 3 goals this season from 23 shots (Shot on target: 39.13%). This in-line with his xG of 2.77 suggesting that he gets himself into great goal-scoring positions when he does convert the chance. His ability to assist other attackers is also a highlight as he has had 1 assist this season although this was lower than his expected assist of 1.88 meaning that there were occasions that other attackers were not able to convert chances off his play. Daisuke’s goal conversion rate of 13.04% places him in a cluster with players such as M. Yasir from Goal with a conversion rate of 13.64% and N. Singh from East Bengal with a conversion rate of 14.29%.

Daisuke is also a disciplined player having picked up no cards this season and committing 0.39 fouls per match on average.

Across 20 games, Daisuke had average approximately 5.10 offensive duels per game, finding success on 43.04% of the time and a dribble success of 55.32%. This is also similar to places such as R. Shabong from Punjab who had played 10 matches with 4.93 offensive duels per match and a success rate of 43.18% and P. Retre from Goa playing 17 matches and 4.97 offensive duels per match and 42.31% success rate. A slight increase in Daisuke’s game can improve him to the level of J. Mazorro who this season had played 20 matches with 6.05 offensive duels per game and a success rate of 60%.

Daisuke passing range has also been a success this season with 80% and 86.36% accurate progression and short/medium passes. He has ranked above the league and other midfield average across all cross types however his crossing accuracy can be improved as it is at 30% for the current season. Overall, Daisuke Sakai had a great season and with slight adjustments to his game, he can be a player to watch out for the upcoming season.

3.5. Jeakson Singh Thounaojam

Jeakson Singh had played across 10 matches this season with minimal output contribution as he had scored 0 goals and 0 assists. He had a total of 1 shot this season which was also off-target. An area of focus for this player along with attacking output is the discipline. Across 10 games this season, Jeakson has average 2.25 fouls per game collecting 3 yellow cards and 1 red card.

Jeakson’s offensive game was strong for the matches he was involved in, partaking in approximately 3.74 offensive duels per match and finding success in approximately 48% of those duels with a dribble success of 33.33%. This is similar to players such as A. Chhetri from Goa who has also played 10 matches, with 3.81 offensive duels per game and averaging a success rate of 50% and Abijith PA from Hyderabad who has played 9 matches with 3.61 offensive duels per match and a success rate of 47.06%. To take Jeakson’s game to the next level, he can immolate players such as H. Boumous from Mohun Bagan who has been involved in 8 matches this season but has similar offensive duels per match with 5.22 and a success rate of 68.97%. Jeakson’s speed can be further utilized by the wider attacking contributors to get him behind the defenders and create goal scoring opportunities for both him and the rest of the team with his passing ability.

From the 10 games that Jeakson has been involved, he has displayed tremendous ability to create lateral passes and short/medium passes through his success percentage of 91.67% and 87.18%. This is above average against players in similar positions and the overall league average for these passing types. However crosses and smart passes can be implemented into his game for the upcoming season as he has had 0% success rate.

3.6. Danish Farooq

Danish Farooq had a full campaign with Kerala Blasters being involved in 21 games across the season with a goal contribution of 2 goals and 0 assists. Impressively, both his goals were headers. His goal contribution came from 26 shots across the season with a goal conversion rate of 7.692 goals as a result of only 15.38% shots on target. This places him alongside players such as I. Khan from Jamshedpur who has been involved in 19 matches with 24 shots and 2 goals (goal conversion rate: 8.33%). If Farooq can improve his shot on target percentage to the likes of N. Sekar from East Bengal (Shot on Target: 35.71%, Total Shots: 28), he will have a greater chance of increasing his conversion rate and contributing attacking wise to the success of Kerala Blasters in the upcoming season.

Farooq didn’t provide any assists. Defensively, he committed 8 fouls (1.67 per game) and received no cards. In terms of offensive play, Danish had 3.45 offensive duels per match, finding success 51.72% of the time and successful dribbling rate of 55.56%. This is similar to the likes of F. Nazareth from Mumbai City who has played only 3 matches this season but has maintained an offensive duel success rate of 50% from 3.05 duels per match.

The passing playstyle of Danish Farooq has been tremendous this season as his chance creation for his teammates is evident throughout the season. He averages a success rate of 80.62% for short/medium passes and 86% for lateral passes. However, to improve his game further, he can attempt and find success in more smart and through passes behind the defenders for the attacker or wingers to come onto. This characteristic is extremely effective when playing against a high line. His ability to have an approximate 50% success rate across crosses and long passes is evident in his ability to switch play and spread the opposition defense to create chances in the middle.

3.7. Sukham Yoibenha Meitei

Sukham Yoibenha Meitei had a nice ease into the Kerala Blasters set up having only played 2 matches with 1 shot across both matches highlighting the minimal number of chances he was offered.

The data for this player is limited due to this and no further analysis could be obtained.

3.8. Vibin Mohanan

Vibin Mohanan has had a similar season to Danish Farooq as he has been involved in 18 matches across the season, outputting 1 goal and 0 assists from 14 shots with a shot on target percentage of 42.86%. His goal conversion rate is 7.143%. This places him on the likes of players such V. Puthiya from East Bengal who has had 15 shots with a 33.33% shot on target and a goal conversion rate of 6.67%. If Vibin can improve his number of shots, correlation suggests that his goal conversion rate will increase, and he will be on similar stats to players such as C. Shields from Chennaiyin FC who has a goal conversion rate of 15.79% and expected goal of 2.88 goals from 19 shots in total.

Across 18 matches, Vibin has partaken in 5.56 offensive duels per match on average with 35.96% success rate. His dribbling success is 56% suggesting that he gets himself into open spaces and can bypass the defense when needed to. This places himself with players such as R. Pandre, R. Philippoteaux and S. Gama who share similar characteristic and playing style. A slight improvement on taking the defense more often could see Vibin Mohanan immolate players such as S. Kynshi from Punjab who had 7.74 offensive duels per match and a success rate of 75%. This slight improvement can drastically impact the team’s effectiveness in attacking play.

Vibin’s progressive pass success rate is 73.64% which is among one of the best in league and above average when compared to other midfielders. This player has incredibly high position and addressing the gaps in his attacking contribution can immensely impact the team’s play forward for the upcoming season.

3.9. Mohammed Azhar

Mohammed Azhar had primarily played in both midfield and defense this season having partaken in 15 matches with 0 goal and assists. He had a total of 5 shots with an expected goal value of 0.11 goals which indicates that he often doesn’t find himself in goal scoring opportunities and neither in goal creating opportunities as his expected assists 0.07. This is indicating that his role in the team is to be a member of the build-up play which ultimately ends in a goal or goal chance.

When playing in defense he has a composed discipline committing 0.93 fouls per game on average and picking up only 3 yellow cards and 0 red cards. When in offense, Azhar has 5.14 offensive duels per match with 48% success rate and a dribbling success rate of 49.38%. This is similar to players such as Lalremtluanga Fanai from Bengaluru who has played 10 games with 4.47 offensive duels per match on average and a 47.83% success rate. With a slight increase in the number of offensive duels per game, Azhar can immolate the contribution and statistic of Alberto Ripoll who has maintained 10.46 offensive duels per match and a success rate of 56.07% from 11 matches.

The passing range and success of Mohammed Azhar is one of the best in this Kerala team for the 23/24 season as he is above the league and midfielder average for all passing type success apart from crossing, smart and through passes. Azhar has maintained a passing accuracy of approximately 75%-90% for all other passing types (lateral, long, progressive, short/medium, forward). His ability to successfully execute these passes on a number of occasions is crucial for the attacking variability of Kerala Blasters and as emphasised this characteristic will be crucial for switching playstyle in the upcoming season.

4. Attack

4.1. Kwame Peprah

Kwame Peprah had a season of mixed luck playing at the center forward position for 12 matches, amassing 29 shots throughout those matches but only scoring 2 goals. This is inline with his expected goals of 2.23 but what is to note is his shot on target of 17.24% in conjunction with his goal conversion rate of 6.88%. This is in line with Javi Siverio from Jamshedpur FC who had similar stats with a goal conversion rate of 11.11% but a shot on target percentage of 25.93% from an overall total of 27 shots throughout 18 matches he’s been involved in.

Kwame engaged in approximately 12.55 offensive duels per game, winning 37.14% of them. His successful dribble rate was 57.50% indicating his ability to take on opponents effectively. He has similar numbers to high performing players in his position with the likes of Roy Krishna and Diego Mauricio averaging approximately 12 offensive duels per game and finding success 36% and 38% of those total offensive duels. Peprah’s number of touches in the box per game was 3.41, suggesting his involvement in goal-scoring opportunities. He delivered 19.63 passes to the penalty area per game, showcasing his creativity and vision in the final third. His accurate back passes stood at an impressive 86.79%, while accurate crosses were 30%. This suggests that he has the capabilities to bring supporting players onto the attack and create chances through hold up play.

A potential area of improvement which can be focused on Kwame Peprah is the ability to be clinical in front of goal. Players in the league with a similar or lower shots tally across the season have produced higher goal totals. The notable being T. Juric and Prathib Gogoi who had 16 and 25 shots respectively with a goal conversion rate of 31% and 20%.

4.2. Adrian Luna

Adrian Luna’s season with the Kerala Blasters showcased his impressive creativity and playmaking abilities in the 9 matches he has played. He recorded 3 assists and scored 3 goals, surpassing his expected assists and expected goals tally of 2.57 assists and 0.55 goals respectively. From the 8 shots he has taken throughout the season, he has a conversion rate of 25% placing him with other midfielders and attackers such as C.Main from Bengaluru and Victor Rodriguez from Goa FC although Adrian Luna has more goals.

Adrian Luna’s passing game is among the best in the league with his accurate short/medium pass sitting at 85.38% although an area of improvement noted was his low success in through and smart passes sitting approximately at 33% and 38%. An improvement in this area can see him break high defensive lines and allow the strikers to get in behind in crucial matches and add to his assist tally.

In terms of offensive actions, Luna has a high dribble success rate at 62% making him one of the top dribbles in the league. However, his offensive duels success percentage is at 46.34% with approximately 8 offensive duels per game. This places him among similar players such as M.Molla who had a success rate of 47% (7.65 offensive duels per game) and very similar to T.Juric who had a 46.67% success rate averaging 8.23 duels per game. Players such as S.Vadakkepeedika from East Bengal have notched up approximately 10 offensive duels per game whilst maintaining a success rate of 62% and this is a potential area which can be improved in Adrian’s game to push him to the next level in terms of output and chance creation.

4.3. Justine Emmanuel

Emmanuel Justine had a steady start to his career at Kerala Blasters having been involved in 6 matches predominantly playing on the wings and as center forward. Across the 6 matches he was involved in, Justine had 3 shots in total with none of them on target producing an expected goals total of 0.12 for the season. From the data derived, it is difficult to comment with confidence on potential improvement due to a small sample size, but it may be beneficial to improve the player’s spatial awareness to get him into scoring positions. Although Justine has a small sample size, his statistics are similar to players such as D.Lalhlimpuia from Punjab who had played 6 matches also with 4 shots in total. However, this player’s shooting position were more opportunistic to scoring as his xG from 6 games totaled to 0.41 goals as compared to Justine’s 0.12 goals.

Despite his lack of goals, Justine has displayed extreme potential through his passing range highlighting 85.38% successful short/medium passes combined with 66.30% successful forward passes which is proven by his 2 assists in 6 matches, surpassing his expected assist total of 0.29 assists. This places his statistics with players such as Sunil Chhetri (MP: 19, A: 3, xA: 0.46) and J. Cummings from Mohun Bagan (MP: 20, A:2, xA: 1.17), although the comparison players have played exponentially more matches.

Another highlight was Emmanuel Justine play is his ability to carry the ball forward down the wings with a successful dribble of 62.50% but an area of improvement noted was his inability to take players on which is highlighted by his offensive duel success rate of 34.48% having taken an average of 15 offensive duels per game.

Overall, Emmanuel Justine is a player of high potential and has displayed a great start to his career at Kerala Blasters.

4.4. Fedor Černych

Fedor Černych had a season ups and downs playing in 9 matches this season primarily in the center forward position. This role requires clinical execution in front of goals as well as ability to bring players into attack and this heavily proven in Fedor’s to execute goal scoring opportunities through sound progressive and short/medium passes. His successful progressive passes percentage stood at 83.33% (one of the highest in the league) and his short/medium passes were at 80.82%. This progressive pass success is league and attacker average of 72%.

However, an area of improvement for Fedor is his number of offensive duels, partaking in approximately 6 offensive duels per game average a success rate of 44.44%. This is similar to players such as M.Singh from NorthEast United who had played 9 matches also, averaging 6 offensive duels per game and gaining a success rate of 38.1%. A player that plays a similar style to Fedor is I. Yadwad who had played 16 games for Chennaiyin FC partaking in approximately 6 offensive duels per game and finding success 54.84% of those duels.

This season, Fedor Černych has scored 2 goals (xG = 1.41) from 10 shots with a goal conversion rate of 20%. For an attacker, this is quite low and therefore improving the clinical output of the player in front of goal as well as improving special awareness to get into scoring positions can be considered.

4.5. Ishan Pandita

Ishan Pandita had a season of low output being involved in 15 matches throughout the season but registering only 12 shots overall playing in the center forward position. Of these 12 shots, only 8.33% were on targeting with the player scoring 0 goals and obtaining an xG of 1.47 goals. Ishan also registered 0 assists while having an expected assist of 0.13. These low numbers combined with low expected goals suggests that Ishan’s position to create better chances can be improved and shot effectiveness can be improved as 8.33% on target for an attacker is low. A player with similar struggles to Ishan in front of goal is A. Stevanovic from Jamshedpur who had played 16 matches, registered 13 shots and scored 0 with a shot on target of 15.38% or KP Rahul who has had 19 shots with 0 goals and shot on target of 15.79% although this player plays primarily down the right wing.

Ishan’s offensive stats suggest that he is a player that likes to take the defenders on as he has approximately 12 offensive duels per 90 but only finding success 29.51% of those. This is very similar to Carlos Martinez from Goa who has played 21 games, average 11.21 offensive duels per game and finding success 29.21% of those. With Ishan’s successful dribble rate of 50%, and improvement in finding gaps in opposition defense, he has the potential to be a dangerous striker for Kerala upfront.

4.6. Nihal Sudeesh

Nihal Sudheesh had a good season based on output, scoring 1 goal from 3 shots across 8 matches primarily playing on the right-wing and as a center forward based on tactics. This has given him a shot on target of 66.67% although this is a false positive stat as his number of shots is low so it is unpredictable to suggest whether he can maintain this accuracy output. He has out done his xG of 0.39 whilst maintaining 1 assist (xA = 0.13). His goal conversion rate of 33.33% is the highest in the league for all attackers that have scored 1 goal with the most comparable player to Nihal Sudheesh being G.Singh from Mumbai City and Steve Ambri from Jamshedpur who has a goal conversion rate of 20% and 16% respectively.

As a winger, Nihal has approximately 8 offensive duels per game winning 7.69% of them. He also has a dribble success of 20%. This is an area of improvement as it may help the team create more chances down the wings if Nihal is able to bypass the defenders and create crossing chances for the center forward to come onto. For all players with minimum 5 offensive duels per 90, Nihal Sudheesh has the lowest success rate with the with the most comparable player and the next lowest offensive duels success rate coming from A. D’Silva of Hyderabad FC (MP = 6, Offensive Duels/Game = 7.86, Won % = 13.89%). Nihal Sudheesh has great short/medium passes finding success 72.50% of total passes and this in line with the league and attacker average. However, his crossing success is 33.33% and this is an area for improvement to enhance the overall team play and allow the strikers to have more avenues for goal scoring opportunities.

The overall offensive contribution from Nihal appears to be low and a potential area of focus for the upcoming season.

4.7. Korou Singh Thingujam

Korou had a nice ease into the Kerala Blasters set up having only played 1 match and gaining an expected goal output of 0.02 goals highlighting the minimal number of chances he was offered in that match.

The data for this player is limited due to this and no further analysis could be obtained.

4.8. Dimitrios Diamantakos

Dimitrios Diamantakos had a terrific 23/24 season, completing the campaign as the league’s top goal scorer having scored 13 goals from 17 matches with a goal conversion rate of 31.70%. This places him alongside players such as Roy Krishna who had scored 12 goals from 22 matches with a conversion rate of 32.34% and both players had similar shots on target percentage with 58.54% (Diamantakos) and 62.16% (Krishna). A notable statistic which stands out for Diamantakos is that his xG for the season was 7.34 goals and he has almost doubled that which tells that he is a player that is able to score goals from low probability areas.

As well as scoring goals, Diamantokas has provided 2 assists (xA = 1.10) showcasing his ability to be fully engaged in the offensive plays. Primarily playing as a center forward, Dimitrios has taken on average 11.08 offensive duels per game with a success rate of 43.72% which places him alongside players such L. Chhangte who averaged 10.74% with success rate of 39.15% and S. Bhat from Mohun Bagan who averaged 10.38 offensive duels with success rate of 40% however, Diamanatakos has a higher offensive duel success rate.

The passing stats for Diamanatakos has displayed that his success rate among all passing types except crosses, long and forward passes are higher than the league and position average which emphasizes how important his in-game contribution is to goal creating chances.

A potential area for improvement in Diamantakos’ game, albeit not a major concern is his fouling ratio as he does commit approximately 2 fouls per game on average having picked up 4 yellow cards and 1 red in this campaign.

4.9. Rahul KP

KP Rahul had a season of learning playing in 18 matches this primarily on the right wing. This role requires getting into great positions and creating chances for the other forward players to get onto and KP Rahul had a low output in terms of assists, assisting only once with an expected assist of 1.34 assists. This shows that his chance of creation was quite low throughout this season. This is like J. Murray (Chennaiyin FC) who across 20 matches registered 1 assist, underperforming his expected assist of 1.58.

KP Rahul also scored 0 goals having taken 19 shots throughout this season with a 15% shot on target accuracy. According to his statistics, his offensive positioning and play-making ability is an area of improvement for the upcoming season.

KP Rahul has an approximate 50% successful dribbling rate however this in conjunction with his low offensive duel rate of 6.15 duels per game highlights that he may often find space behind the defender easier than taking the defender on. This again is highlighted by an offensive duel success rate of 28.57%. KP Rahul also has high passes to the penalty area average 26.54 per game with most of those being lateral passes through a success rate of 77.11%. This is very high and in line with A. Luna who has registered the team high of 32.31 passes into the penalty area per game.

Overall KP Rahul has had a quite season but he has shown high potential through his passing range and is a player that can perform well in the following season.